The problem of overweight and obesity has now become a nation-wide problem for the USA. More than 60% of Americans (about 127 million adults) are overweight (see websites of American Obesity Association www.obesity.org, Centers for Disease Control www.cdc.gov, etc.) and most are car drivers. There are a number of weight control systems and methods to lose weight. Many weight control plans are available to individual users from which the person can select a particular program designed to control the weight of that individual and, associated with such programs are programs involving exercise and like physical activities. Many different kinds of electrical scales have also been suggested for diet and weight control plans. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,318,447 entitled “Diet Scale with Weight Progress Indicator” issued to Northcutt in 1982, discloses a diet scale with a digital readout and microcomputer that is used to enable a dieter to enter a diet program having an objective weight and a given time interval. U.S. Pat. No. 4,423,792 entitled “Electronic Scale Apparatus and Method of Controlling Weight” issued to Cowan in 1984, discloses an apparatus that includes electronic circuit in which the weight of the individual at the selected point in time can be compared against the base weight. The U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,244 entitled “Dieter's Weighing Scale” issued to Zeigner et al in 1986, discloses a talking electronic scale with microprocessor that compares the goal weight with the present weight to actuate a voice synthesis device to provide preselected comments appropriate to the comparison. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,577,710 entitled “Apparatus for promoting good health” issued to Ruzumna in 1986, there is disclosed an apparatus that may be embodied in a standard version for providing standard messages based upon departure of measured weight from desired weight of a person. A Closing Size Matrix contains closing size information which is a function of age, size, and weight of a person and may be used to find correct weight. The U.S. Pat. No. 4,844,187 entitled “Future weight machine” issued to Jabero in 1989, discloses an apparatus including means for determining the weight of the individual. The individual may enter the estimated weight of the clothing being worn, or the apparatus may automatically employ a standard correction factor.
Selecting food and counting the consumption of food calories is a common function of many weight control systems. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,412,564 entitled “System and Method for Diet Control”_issued to Ecer in 1995, there is disclosed a diet control system that employs “smart cards” having memory and microprocessor for writing information at a food store or a restaurant check-out counter for collecting electronically the dietary nutritional consumption.
All the above-described patents require the dieter to have the scale on the floor at home and have the same weighing procedure. Thus the dieter has to find time to step up on the scale. As a result, the described patents do not help a dieter who is busy and highly active to choose a diet and lose weight and keep health in good condition. These activities often depend on a mood, physical state, and free time of the individual. As a result, an individual very often does not obey the requirements of the weight loss program and exercise plans on time or does not accomplish them.
The U.S. Pat. No. 6,649,848 entitled “Vehicle with onboard dieters' weight progress identifying and control system and method” issued to Kriger in 2003, discloses an on-board vehicle weight progress control system that weighs the driver's seat when a vehicle gear selector is in the “Park” position and memorizes it's value to calculate the weight of the driver that will be weighed together with the driver seat in the future.
When the driver sits down on a driver seat, he/she is prompted to keep his or her legs out from the floor and away from the pedals, and the system weighs the driver in a few seconds.
By using an on-board vehicle dieter's weight control system each driver and/or passenger in a car could get help to prevent possible overweight. It is the principal object of this patent to extend the utility of a motor vehicle, especially a passenger vehicle such as an automobile, a van, and even a boat, so that the time spent in the vehicle can be utilized more efficiently and the interaction of the vehicle with the driver and/or passenger can be improved.
An automobile equipped with this invention automatically weighs the driver and/or passenger and provide the ability to monitor that weight, manage and control that weight, and provide whatever information may be required for the dieter in that regard. The invention utilizes microcomputer facilities that are enhanced by an ability of dialoging between the on-board microcomputer and the driver and/or passenger. The on-board vehicle weight progress control system manages measurement of the dieter's weight during a time when he or she is in the vehicle seat during a trip and does not waste extra time for this procedure so that one cannot forget about and miss the weight measurement. This patent provides a safety service for the driver-dieter by use of an algorithm of availability during a trip and traffic recognition routine. The on-board system of this patent is thus more reliable than any in-door weight progress control system and method because it helps the dieters to shorten the time and attention of the dieters' activities and also helps to manage their health.
Another reason for a device weighing a person in a vehicle is to use it in a car safety system. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,232,243 entitled “Occupant sensing apparatus” issued to Blackburn et al. in 1993, an occupant sensing apparatus for use in an occupant restraint system comprises a film having an electrical characteristic with changeable states and a contact member. An electrical circuit is connected to the film for providing a signal when an occupant in a car seat. In car safety systems, a sensor is employed to weigh an occupant of a vehicle seat and to control an inflation fluid directed into a restraint accordingly to the weight of the car seat occupant. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,573,269 entitled “Apparatus and method for sensing and restraining an occupant of a vehicle seat” issued to Gentry et al. in 1996, an apparatus for sensing and restraining an occupant of a vehicle seat includes a weight sensor and a seat incline sensor. The weight sensor senses a sensed weight of an occupant The incline sensor senses a characteristic which affects the difference between the sensed weight and the actual weight of the occupant. Another characteristic that affects the difference between sensed weight and real weight of an occupant is a position of occupant's feet on the car floor (a distance between the occupant's feet and a car seat).
Apparatus includes foot sensors for sensing the distance between the occupant's feet and a car seat. The apparatus includes a controller and an inflatable vehicle occupant restraint. The controller determines a computed weight of the occupant as a function of the sensed weight and the both characteristics (the car seat incline and the distance between the occupant's feet and the car seat). Inflation fluid is directed into the restraint to inflate the restaurant and is controlled in response to the computed weight determined by the controller. As a driver weighing device, the system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,092,838 entitled “System and method for determining the weight of a person in a seat in a vehicle” issued to Walker in 2000, may be used. This system detects the weight of a person seated in a vehicle seat and sends a signal to the air bag actuation controller if the output voltage of the operational amplifier is greater than the predefined level. The other device that may be used for the same purposes is a system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,069,325 entitled “Seat Weight measuring apparatus” issued to Aoki in 2000, where a seat measuring apparatus measures a seat weight including a weight of a passenger sitting on an automotive seat.
All described above on-board vehicle systems to weigh an individual are not convenient or are not accurate because they use different kinds of indirect methods to weigh the entire body of an individual.